In the push for professional sports leagues moving towards getting seasons up and running from the COVID-19 hiatus, the NFL is taking a peculiar approach in the protests for Black Lives.
The NFL in the 1st week season opener will have the African American national anthem “Lift Every Voice and Sing” played before kickoff in every game played.
Obviously, and for good reason, the reaction was divisive from critics as this only a piecemeal empty support of the current fight for racial injustice from the NFL.
The loudest critique was from Texas Senator Ted Cruz that stated there is only one national anthem, that being the Star-Spangled Banner that should be performed. Criticism of the Sen. Cruz’s remarks were swift. It does not matter if Sen. Cruz is familiar with the “Lift Every Voice & Sing” or not, but his rebuke of not acknowledging the impact the anthem says a lot about his understanding of the Black American tradition and Black contributions to the American cultural heritage
Lift Every Voice and Sing was originally written as a poem by writer James Weldon Johnson and set to music by his brother J. Rosamond Johnson a classically trained composer. The poem was written in 1899 as a means to commemorate President Abraham’s Lincoln’s birthday. The first known original performance of the song was in February 1900 in Jacksonville, Florida at the Stanton School preformed by 500 school children in which Weldon Johnson was the principal at the school. The song was incorporated by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1919 as the “Negro” national anthem. Both Johnson brothers were heavily involved in the NAACP.
This song regarding the struggle is not just a “2nd anthem” but the marching call for hope in decades of injustice served against the black community. It is concerning when Senators such as Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton react to issues on race with incendiary comments, only to score points with their conservative base. This shows a disconnect in American in how of citizens and companies should engage in education and protests on racial justice. While the NFL acknowledge the impact to play, it is barely a gesture in terms of what the league needs to do in apologizing to Colin Kaepernick and supporting other players that speak out in support of racial justice such as Michael Bennett and Kenny Stills.
Variations of Lift Every Voice and Sing
A Capella Version of Lift Every Voice and Sing by Gospel Acapella Group Committed that won the NBC show competition the Sing-Off
Most Popular Version is Beyoncé version’s during 2018 Coachella
Motown Soul Legend Kim Weston Preformed the song during the 1972 Wattstax festival
R&B Singer Melba Moore released version of the song in the late 80s that feature appearances from Stevie Wonder and also popular Gospel and R&B artists such as Bebe Winans, Jeffery Osborne, Bobby Brown, The Clark Sisters, and Dionne Warwick among others. Also, Louis Gossett Jr. is in the intro.
The Typecaster 